Your Go-To Vinaigrette Recipe

[Chris Amirault]

It's been a while since we've had a general topic on vinaigrettes, and I'll bet that there are some good ideas out there.

I haven't measured much since I started doing two things. The first is keeping a couple of homemade emulsifiers handy; usually it's roasted garlic and mustard. The second is finding a cylindrical container that fits my immersion blender perfectly, which enables me to make small amounts easily.

So here's the rough version: a tablespoon of mustard, garlic, or the two combined; a glug of red wine or sherry vinegar; ~4 times that glug of oil (usually half olive and half grapeseed); a grind of pepper and a dash of salt. Blend and adjust. If I'm feeling motivated, I'd toss in a few thyme leaves, an anchovy and a few capers, smoked paprika, or something I can just grab. If I'm really motivated, I'll mince a shallot, grate some parmigiano reggiano, or grab an anchovy from the salt.

You?

[LindaK]

My default vinaigrette uses a bit of dijon mustard as an emulsifier, equal parts sherry vinegar and fresh lemon juice for the acid, and good olive oil. S+P always, sometimes garlic. Rarely anything more. I like to layer flavors in the salad, not so much in the vinaigrette.

[Chris Amirault]

Oil to acid ratio?

[Paul Stanley]

I don't have a "go to" recipe exactly, because so much depends on what I'm dressing. To my taste a dressing that is perfect for bitter greens like endive will overwhelm a mild lettuce; sweet things like beets or carrot need acidity or mustardiness that would be totally out of place on tomatoes. And so on.

That said, I guess I have some likes and dislikes. Never garlic, in any form. Never balsamic vinegar at all. Usually mix strongly flavoured oils like walnut or olive with at least some neutral oil, which for me usually means a neutral groundnut or grape seed. Not necessarily mustard, though often a tiny bit -- but taste is more important than emulsification. Since I always make the dressing immediately before I use it I don't worry about it splitting, and truth to tell I dislike thick dressings. And very rarely any flavouring at all, except pepper (salt of course, but that's hardly a flavour) and occasionally a teaspoon of minced shallot. Herbs, if I use them, go in the salad not the dressing. Acid/oil ratio varies depending on the salad and the acid, from maybe 1:6 if I was dressing fennel with lemon, to maybe 1:3 if I was dressing endive sherry vinegar.

[catdaddy]

I don't have a "go to" recipe exactly, because so much depends on what I'm dressing. To my taste a dressing that is perfect for bitter greens like endive will overwhelm a mild lettuce; sweet things like beets or carrot need acidity or mustardiness that would be totally out of place on tomatoes. And so on.

That said, I guess I have some likes and dislikes. Never garlic, in any form. Never balsamic vinegar at all. Usually mix strongly flavoured oils like walnut or olive with at least some neutral oil, which for me usually means a neutral groundnut or grape seed. Not necessarily mustard, though often a tiny bit -- but taste is more important than emulsification. Since I always make the dressing immediately before I use it I don't worry about it splitting, and truth to tell I dislike thick dressings. And very rarely any flavouring at all, except pepper (salt of course, but that's hardly a flavour) and occasionally a teaspoon of minced shallot. Herbs, if I use them, go in the salad not the dressing. Acid/oil ratio varies depending on the salad and the acid, from maybe 1:6 if I was dressing fennel with lemon, to maybe 1:3 if I was dressing endive sherry vinegar.

I would agree and add that I usually add the oil and acid and S&P separately to the salad before being tossed. Mustard or roasted garlic would be added to the acid if used and only for flavor not for their emulsifying strength.

[Hell2Heights]

I almost always use Shallot and rarely use Garlic nowadays. Dijon Mustard or sometimes grainy goes in. However I usually use less oil than most recipes...maybe 3 parts Oil to one part Acid. It depends on the Acid I guess. If I'm using something punchy like Sherry Vinegar I usually up the Oil ratio.

Most of the time I just shake the hell out of it all in a small jar rather than breaking out an appliance. Plus I like having the little bits of Shallot which might otherwise be broken up by a blade.

I can't wait until it's warm enough around here to start cranking out salads.

[Chef Jonny]

I usually add 1 parts vinegar(sherry, red or good ol' fashioned white wine) to 2 parts oil... a little blend of olive/grapeseed, mince some garlic, S&P and the most important part *drum roll* a good shot of maple syrup. Good enough to drink.

[andiesenji]

I use the 3 to 1 ratio of oil to vinegar.

My current favorite which is pretty versatile.

3/4 cup grapeseed oil (or avocado oil) for Asian salads I use sesame oil.

1/4 cup rice vinegar (seasoned)

1 tablespoon mustard (I use my homemade but Dijon works well)

2 tablespoons Mirin

freshly ground pepper varies, I like a lot

sea salt to taste

whatever herbs you prefer - thyme, etc.

I blend everything with a whisk or immersion blender

Let stand for about half an hour so the flavors develop.

Whisk before serving - at this point you can add citrus juice, berry juice or other "flavorings" depending on what type of salad.

For fruit salads I like orange juice, especially blood orange.

You can add finely grated cheeses,

[Dakki]

5:1 ratio. Spanish EVOO - anything more exotic is pretty much unavailable here. I'm embarrassed to admit I like plain old cider vinegar best, but I'll use red or white wine vinegar if the rabbit food demands it. Mustard (usually but not necessarily Dijon), black pepper, salt and sometimes Worcester sauce.

[bmdaniel]

Mine is pretty similar to your basic one, except I usually just throw in a raw garlic clove or two and use all walnut oil (trying to keep omega 6 ratio down - refined walnut oil has been the most palatable option in this regard I have found in this regard).

My second most frequent is soy+apple cider vinegar+garlic, some kind of sweetener, and walnut oil - quite good as well.

[qrn]

I use the usual 1 to 3 for vinegar/light OO,plus a touch of sugar, salt and white pepper,juiceof garlic and onion,or shallot and for emulsification, some lecithin that I powder with a mortar and pestal,

Bud

[djyee100]

On days when I'm so tired it's a struggle to wash greens:

I put the washed and dried greens in a bowl, and sprinkle on some olive oil, just enough to coat the leaves lightly. I toss to coat the leaves. Then I add a dash of salt, and a tiny sprinkle of vinegar. It may be only a few drops of vinegar depending on the quantity of greens. Toss again. Taste a leaf. Adjust the oil-vinegar-salt balance by adding whatever the dressing seems to need. Toss. Taste again. Keep going until the balance is just right. Once you understand this method, you'll only need to taste once or twice, and you'll have the balance you like.

[heidih]

On days when I'm so tired it's a struggle to wash greens:

I put the washed and dried greens in a bowl, and sprinkle on some olive oil, just enough to coat the leaves lightly. I toss to coat the leaves. Then I add a dash of salt, and a tiny sprinkle of vinegar. It may be only a few drops of vinegar depending on the quantity of greens. Toss again. Taste a leaf. Adjust the oil-vinegar-salt balance by adding whatever the dressing seems to need. Toss. Taste again. Keep going until the balance is just right. Once you understand this method, you'll only need to taste once or twice, and you'll have the balance you like.

Along the same lines I like to smash the garlic with salt in the big salad bowl, wisk in (with a fork) the acid and the oil and then add the greens; adjusting to taste. I think Julia Child did something like this in one of the books.

For a standard to keep in the fridge we go a bit off the track and do a touch of Dijon, few drops of sesame oil, olive oil, vinegar (malt!) and fish sauce and/or soy for the saltiness, plus just a touch of honey or a marmalade like orange or currant. A crushed garlic clove rests in there. Our ratio is way on the high acid side.

[xxchef]

Like you Chris, I've got my regular container I always use and don't measure anymore.

For a quart container: put in a couple of well-mashed cloves of garlic, a good dollop of Dijon mustard, a little salt, a few grinds of black pepper, maybe some fresh tarragon in the summer or a shake of ground celery seed, fill 1/4 full with red wine vinegar (shake), top off to a little more than 3/4 full with peanut oil/EVOO/walnut oil depending on my mood (shake like crazy).

This is definitely an acidic dressing which suits my tastes (but makes wine paring a bear). I usually leave this at room temperature and often just add more ingredients to the old dregs when I need to make more. The never-ending vinaigrette.

[Dakki]

To the people using a 3:1 ratio, doesn't that make the dressing too vinegary? Is there something else in your ingredients that helps tame the acidity?

[qrn]

To the people using a 3:1 ratio, doesn't that make the dressing too vinegary? Is there something else in your ingredients that helps tame the acidity?

may be in the way we are saying it...mine is 3to 1 ,3 being the oil,,, think some #'s are the other way around...

Bud

[thock]

I don't have a standard ratio, but the last time I made it, I put a healthy dollop of Dijon mustard in a Mason jar, added balsamic vinegar and olive oil and freshly ground black pepper, and blended with a stick blender. I ended up having to add more vinegar and oil because it was so thick. I didn't keep track of the ratio of oil to vinegar, but it tastes good. It's still fairly thick, and it hasn't come out of the emulsion well after a week.

How do you store your vinaigrette, after you make it, and how much do you make at a time?

[Pierogi]

3T Champagne vinegar to 8T olive oil. Smashed, minced garlic clove, S&P, a dollop of Dijon and a larger (2-3x) dollop of mayo. Whisk the vinegar, garlic, S&P, mustard and mayo, then drizzle in the olive oil. I have used Sherry vinegar and white Balsamic as well, and it was fine. I think it would also work with rice wine vinegar. It's my "house" dressing.

[mgaretz]

This is my "go-to" recipe. It uses a combination of olive oil and vegetable oil to keep the oil from congealing in the fridge. It makes enough to last for a few weeks:

2 ozs vegetable oil

4 ozs olive oil

2 ozs balsamic vinegar

1/4 tsp Italian seasoning blend – or herbs to taste (see notes)

1 tbs cream sherry

1/4 tsp sea or kosher salt

1 clove of garlic – medium sized, minced

1 tbs Raspberry Syrup (sugar free or regular) or 1 tsp strawberry jam (or raspberry)

1 tbs honey

2 tbs mustard (I use a dijon-style with whole mustard seeds)

[Paul Stanley]

How do you store your vinaigrette, after you make it, and how much do you make at a time?

I don't. I think it loses it's flavour. I make it in the bowl I'm going to toss the salad in, then put the leaves on top. Then toss at the table.

[Chris Amirault]

How do you store your vinaigrette, after you make it, and how much do you make at a time?

I don't always store it, but if I do it's in the fridge. I take it out when I start getting dinner going to warm up.

[scubadoo97]

My vinaigrette is done off the cuff depending on what's available in the fridge and what's for dinner.

Basics acid choices are usually sherry, red wine, rice or cider vinegars, citrus on hand (love tangerines) but limes and lemons are usually handy as well. Zests is used if citrus is used for the acid.

Mustard to emulsify

shallots or garlic for flavor at times

Sometimes something sweet to cut the acid like a drizzle of honey.

Oils used most often are EVOO, vegetable oil or a combo

Ratio of oil depends on the acidity but usually 1 acid to 2 oil sometimes 1 to 1 if it's a low acid vinegar like rice vinegar or if honey was used to cut the sharp acid flavor. Rarely 1 to 3 since I find that too oily for my tastes.

Salt and pepper are standard but other spices can find their way in there like cumin and zatar as well as herbs dried or fresh if I've got them.

I have several small jars that I save for making dressings. Add all the ingredients and shake well

[Paul Bacino]

On days when I'm so tired it's a struggle to wash greens:

I put the washed and dried greens in a bowl, and sprinkle on some olive oil, just enough to coat the leaves lightly. I toss to coat the leaves. Then I add a dash of salt, and a tiny sprinkle of vinegar. It may be only a few drops of vinegar depending on the quantity of greens. Toss again. Taste a leaf. Adjust the oil-vinegar-salt balance by adding whatever the dressing seems to need. Toss. Taste again. Keep going until the balance is just right. Once you understand this method, you'll only need to taste once or twice, and you'll have the balance you like.

This ( above )is what I do, but I use fresh squeezed lemon.

My Mom's go to : was this light oiling of the salad/ then red wine vinegar/ she would then add Italian seasoning!!

[Darienne]

Every second night we eat salad for supper. I make quite a number of other salads...many of which I have found on eG...but our 'greens' salad which is part of every salad meal has the following unsophisticated dressing. Mostly.

2 T olive oil

2 T lemon juice

a dollop of minced garlic, a dollop of L&P, salt & pepper.

End of story.

(Most vinegars don't agree with me too well and my GERD. Lemon juice is not a problem at all.)

[xxchef]

To the people using a 3:1 ratio, doesn't that make the dressing too vinegary? Is there something else in your ingredients that helps tame the acidity?

Acidic? Yes. "too vinegary"? That's a judgement call. I like my dressings feisty and with an acid bite. It suits my taste for most salads. I find I can use less dressing and still get good flavor. It's also lower in calories, ounce-for-ounce (for what that's worth).